Dillon Danis Banned For Life: Dana White Says “I Messed Up” After UFC 322 Brawl
When you poke the bear, you’re going to get the claws. Or in Dillon Danis’s case, when you antagonize an entire camp of Dagestani fighters, you’re going to get a lifetime ban from the UFC. It’s a lesson the 32-year-old learned the hard way at UFC 322 after instigating a massive cage-side brawl that has become the talk of the MMA world. And in a surprising twist, UFC CEO Dana White is shouldering the blame.
Just before the main card kicked off, chaos erupted. Danis, Conor McGregor’s infamous training partner and professional pot-stirrer, was seen getting into a heated scuffle with members of Islam Makhachev’s team. It was a chaotic scene, with punches flying and security scrambling to contain the situation. One of Makhachev’s teammates, Magomed Zaynukov, reportedly landed several shots on Danis before officials, including UFC’s own Hunter Campbell, could separate them. It wasn’t pretty, and now Danis is paying the price.
Following the event, a visibly frustrated Dana White stepped up to the podium and dropped the hammer. “You will never see Dillon Danis at a UFC fight ever again,” he declared, effectively handing the 32-year-old a lifetime ban from attending any future events. So, if you were hoping to see the New Jersey native pull up to another fight, you can forget about it.
How Did This All Go So Wrong?
You’d think the UFC would have a handle on someone as notoriously troublesome as Danis, but according to White, it was his own mistake that led to the mayhem. He admitted that his team warned him about Danis’s presence before the main event. The MMA star had apparently purchased his own ticket but was roaming around, sitting in seats reserved for fighters instead of his own.
“I blame myself for that, actually,” White confessed at the post-fight press conference. “They came back and told me right before I walked out… that Dillon Danis was here and he was moving around.”
Security even reminded White that Jorge ‘Gamebred’ Masvidal was in the building and had a score to settle with Danis. But White, perhaps underestimating the sheer combustible energy in the room, let it slide. “If the guy has a ticket, let him sit in his seat… It never even crossed my mind, as stupid as it could be, that the entire Muslim Brotherhood was here tonight in the first five rows for Islam.”
That oversight proved to be a massive miscalculation. White had the chance to have Danis arrested when security apprehended him, but he declined to press charges. “This is the fight business man,” he explained. “I could have prevented this tonight and I messed up.” It’s a rare admission of fault from the UFC boss, but one that underscores the gravity of the situation. Danis clearly crossed a line, and this time, there’s no coming back.
A History of Bad Blood
Let’s be real, this isn’t Danis’s first rodeo when it comes to causing trouble at a UFC event. Who could forget the infamous UFC 229 post-fight brawl? After Khabib Nurmagomedov submitted Conor McGregor, he leaped over the cage and went straight for Danis, igniting a full-blown melee. It seems old habits die hard, and the bad blood between him and the Dagestani camp has only festered over the years.
Makhachev himself weighed in on the incident, showing little sympathy for Danis. “He say a lot of bad things about our team,” Makhachev stated. “He should be banned from his country also.” While that might be a bit extreme, it’s clear there’s no love lost between these two factions.
For Danis, this lifetime ban is a significant blow. He has long been angling for a shot in the UFC, but his antics outside the cage have now slammed that door shut for good. White made it clear that Danis will never compete in the organization, citing his tendency to “start trouble among a lot of other things.” It seems his reputation has finally caught up with him, leaving him on the outside looking in.
